


It actually feels like Christmas with you by my side

by peirypatt



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-23
Packaged: 2019-09-25 08:03:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17117564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peirypatt/pseuds/peirypatt
Summary: This year Christmas did not look particularly encouraging or merry to Steve, or at least it would have been if someone had not broken into his pity party quite literally.





	It actually feels like Christmas with you by my side

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Drarina1737](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drarina1737/gifts).



> Ok, this is my first fic in AO3, also even though I had the draft in my laptop since October (hence spooky theme) it wasn't until a few hours before the closing of the exchange that I finally finish it, so oppps and sorry about that and rushed end.
> 
> I don't know how to tag people but I want to say thanks to Mr. Walrus and Lastfara for helping me to end this fic.

This Christmas was one of the worst that Steve has ever had and that counted the previous one were creatures from another dimension came to Hawkins to cause mayhem, and damn if that didn't put on perspective how bad it was.

He could bet that everyone was enjoying their vacation from the holidays while he was trapped in his house, not literally, but close enough, and all the confinement was because of his coming of age.   
  
In other circumstances he would be a little excited for his 18th birthday, being legally an adult and all that would bring up some benefits, but in his case, the benefits didn't outweigh the troubles that would come for him after his birthday.   
  
His parents were out paying a visit to their relatives and had left him behind to fend for himself, truly fend for himself this time since nobody knew that he had stayed behind. As far as everyone was concerned, the whole Harrington family went on a family trip. So he couldn't hang out with anybody, drive his car or use the phone except to call his parents.  
  
While he was waiting in the kitchen for the water to boil, he started to think of how unfair it was that he was the one cooking in almost complete darkness because, God forbid, the neighbors saw any light coming from the house and called the police, just because of his greedy family and the stupid curse.  
  
Apparently, some ancestor had made a pact with an evil entity, demon, witch or whatever. To be honest, he wasn't exactly sure of what it was, for all he knows, the creature could be impartial. The point was that a deal was made with a being of questionable morality in exchange of eternal fortune but there were some hiccups. For the wealth to be able to sustain for several generations it was necessary that one person of the family of said generation be the carrier of the curse. He is still isn't completely sure of what that entails since the last person to have it was his uncle, and he only saw him like twice in his life.  
  
A fact was that he was angrier with his father than with anyone else, the son of a bitch just went off on vacation and didn't even give him **The Talk** as anyone would have expected in this kind of situation, or even a small talk on what to expect and his role on the family from now on.  
  
It seemed like his dad, aside from being a shitty father, was also a shitty brother since it appears that he didn't pay too much attention to his brother growing up or to the curse that plagued the whole fucking family tree. That, or it was normal to ostracize the cursed member of the family and if that was the case then it would actually kind of explain some moments in his childhood.   
  
The point is that he couldn’t go outside until his demonic puberty has ended, and God only knows when that would be.   
  
His routine didn't change too much or, more accurately, it wouldn't have changed too much if, in previous years, he had stayed at home instead of going to others people houses to spend the holidays. What a depressing thought that was, even though this hadn't been so different from his daily routine, besides the fact that certain restrictions had been added, he had started to feel like he was going crazy if the boredom didn't kill him first.  
  
At the moment he was in the first stages of the curse which was molting skin, but not in the same way it does after you go to the beach. No, it looked something similar to eraser pieces after you use it. For now, only some random spots of his body were actually affected.  
  
It could be worse,  chunks of skin could be falling off like he was infected with some man-eating disease. Molting by friction was way better in that aspect, but it didn't bring so much relief knowing that in the end, he was turning into this creature out of nightmares. You just had to see his new skin to know how wrong all this was, the color was the deepest shade of black you could imagine.  It was very unsettling how much resemblance it had to the  **ACME's**  black holes in the Looney Toons, how it seemed to suck in everything you put in it.  
  
There was this  _ **"Book"**_ , and he was using the term loosely here. That word was for something bigger than what was actually handed to him, anyway, the pathetic excuse of a guide had some basic steps of how the transformation would be. Apart from the molting, there were other side effects, for example, he would be able to detect the presence of others by pretty much picking up their "vibes" around him, the weather wouldn't affect him anymore, he would be susceptible to some types of witchcraft, there were some dates marked down like  _ **"Must Stay Away from People"**_  and other stuff like possible alternatives for normal, human food, but there weren’t actually answers to questions like:  _What will happen to the previous vessel of the curse when a new one came? Will he be free? Will he die? Is his uncle dead right now?_    
  
He hadn’t expected to be interrupted, while eating spaghetti in the dark like the future dark lord he was becoming, by a shattering sound in the living room and much less, that the interruption was one Billy Hargrove, breaking into his house, drunk. Quite literally, seeing how the glass door that led to the pool wasn’t there anymore.  
  
Well, shit. What was he going to do now? He couldn't just go and stop him in his current state but he also couldn't let him trash the place. Maybe if he waited for Billy to drop dead asleep, he could drag him out to the woods before he woke up.   
  
He hadn’t fainted. The asshole took his beer and started to watch TV. He stayed put in the darkness, waiting for an opportunity. Unfortunately, when he moved, it wasn't because the chance presented himself but more for the fact that Hargrove had decided to wander and go to the second floor where his room was.  
  
He didn't know what he was expecting, but it wasn't finding Hargrove on his bed hugging his pillow. Shit, now he has to wash that pillow, in a normal day the guy smelled like sweat, cigarettes, a strong perfume that didn't hide completely his natural smell, but now, he can smell the spit, beer, liquor, whiskey, dirt to the usual mix.   
  
That asshole better not throw up on his bed.

  
  
**"What the fuck are you doing here!"**  It was funny to see him bolt of the bed with the most terrified expression he had ever seen on the guy. He guessed that that was what happened when you got caught breaking into other people houses.

 

  
**"Harrington? Weren't you on a trip?"**  Billy asked, slightly confused and slurring his words.

 

  
**"Not anymore, so could you tell me why did you break in my house?"**  Steve pressed. 

 

  
**"I don't have my car and it's too cold outside, this was the first house I found,"**  Billy replied.

  
He almost fell for that bullshit, but this wasn't the first house and he also acknowledged that he knew that his home was supposed to be empty or the fact that he knew where he lived in the first place.

  
**"Yeah, but I'm here now. Get out,"**  Steve ordered.

 

  
**"Come on Harrington, where’s your hospitality? Remember, it’s Christmas,"**  Billy tried to persuade Steve.

 

 ****  
**"Santa will understand after he sees the state you left the living room and the sliding door in. Get up, don't make me call Hopper,"**  Steve threatened, hoping that the threat was enough to convince Hargrove to get the hell out of the house. He couldn't risk him coming too close to him just in case he noticed his skin.   
  
He didn't turn around to see if Hargrove was following him, he just beelined to the stairs hoping for the best. What he didn't count on was that the guy would follow him just to detour to the fricking living room. 

 **  
****"Hey, where the fuck are you going?"**  Count on this jackass to not follow a simple order as ‘walk out through the front door’. He can hear an echo that bounces in his head with the voice of Hargrove saying  _"don't tell me what to do"._

 

  
**"I'm searching for my flask."**  Billy was walking around the couch, moving away from all the cushions and wrappings of what he ate, messing up the place, more than it already was. 

 

  
**"Forget it, and leave already if I find the flask I'll keep it and give it to you later."**

 

 ****  
**"In your dreams Harrington, I’m not gonna leave it. Maybe since you are such a rich boy you can afford to lose all your shit, but not me."**  If he were able to hear what Hargrove was mumbling after snapping, he could at least have had a warning. He just moved and didn't see too much of it thinking that he decided to finally leave when in reality he just was going to turn on the lights.  
  
**"Wait!"**  by the time he realized it was too late, the only thing he could do was brace himself.  
  
Opening his eyes slowly, there wasn't any gasp, yell or sound yet. What he found was Billy Hargrove motionless watching him. He couldn't stay there feeling being watched, he needed to be alone and he needs it right now.   
  
Moving through the disaster that Hargrove left, he frantically searched for the damn flask, so desperate that he didn't notice that his hands were trembling. By that point the living room was unrecognizable, his previous decorum thrown away.  
  
He was so lost in thought that he didn't hear when Billy came close, only when his hand was in his shoulder did he snap back to reality. He spun around out of reflex just to retrieve his shoulder and pull away, crossing his arms and trying to hide most of the marks. He stood up. 

 **  
****"I can't find it, you are just going to leave without..."**  He wasn't able to finish the sentence when Hargrove interrupts him.

  
  
**"No."**  The stubborn asshole even had the nerve to look fresh as lettuce, opposed to himself who felt as if he was going to break in any moment. 

 

  
**"No? What do you mean by that? It wasn’t a suggestion. GET OUT!"  
**

 

  
**"What are you going to do if I won't?"**  Both knew that in a fight Steve wouldn't have the upper hand, he couldn't actually force him and calling Hopper was out of limits. The last thing he needed was another person knowing that he was actually still in town and if Hopper knew, there was a chance that the others could find out too.   
  
He was  _trapped, trapped, trapped, fucking trapped._  He could feel the panic slowly taking over him, he was so deep in his mind that he didn't realize he had stopped paying attention to Hargrove, or that he started to scratch his arms releasing shreds of skin. It only took one step to bring him back to reality.  
  
He couldn't allow him to get any closer. He must have hinted to his intention to bolt since he abruptly started to talk again.  **"Your skin, is that why you are hiding?"**

  
  
**"I-what? How is this any of your business?"**

 

  
**"It isn't, but you seem ready to have a fucking breakdown that I'm not interested to handle."  
**

 

  
**"I’m not expecting you to do it!"**  He finally caved and snapped, yelling gave a better aftertaste than he remembered.

 

  
**"Really? There isn’t anyone besides you and me here, that makes me feel responsible for whatever happens to you. I don't want the police knocking at my door because you lose it and decide to do something stupid and die."  
**

 

 **"Whatever, I don't care anymore"**   The idea of anybody from school knowing that he has some freak condition scared him, especially because Hargrove had some weird charm that makes everyone latch of every word he says. Even though no one liked him he always got the attention of people, no matter how improbable the story may be, but after all, people are always more open to gossip than truth anyway. 

 

**"Is this why you are...holed up here in the darkness?"**

  
**"Why do you care?"**

  
  
**"If you don't want to tell me, no problem man,"**  he said as he held up his arms in surrender,  **"It just looks serious."**

 

  
**"I'm not going to die."**  He lets himself sink into the couch. He is less anxious than before but he isn't completely carefree yet.  **"It isn't contagious either if you were wondering."**

  
  
**"What? Worried about little old me Harrington?"**  He jumps over the back of the couch, landing abruptly on the cushions and making him fall close to the other boy.

 

  
**"Dude! What the fuck?"**  Steve asked, exasperated. Billy remained silent with just a grin on his face while he searched for the remote control.

  
  
Without the threat of calling the police, the hurry to leave disappeared and it was time to chill again, apparently. It was weird like everything became background noise.  
  
In the next few hours, Steve learned that Billy could be a pretty decent guy when he wants it, who could have thought that he could actually enjoy his company.

  
  
**"Why were you here Billy?"**  after while he found himself asking the question that's been in his mind for a while.

  
  
**"Didn't I tell you?, I was drunk Harrington."**

  
  
**"The truth, Billy."**  Steve pried.  
  
Something in that phrase touched a nerve and his body went tense.

 

 **"Hey, it's okay everything that happens here stays here"**. It wasn't too much of a solace, but hey, nothing send more don't worry vibes than,  _you already saw my dark secret so it can't get worse than that._

 

 **“Holidays don’t always end well at home, it has been like that for a while, almost my whole life.”**   

 

 **“I understand what you mean, I’m not a big fan either, love the free time and decoration though.** ”  He put his arm on the blond’s shoulder, he wasn’t sure if it was as reassuring as he wanted it to be but it has to count for something, right?

 

It did seem to work because Billy’s next sentence,  **“Don’t forget the booze”** , actually made him smile

 

 **“Yeah, you’re right. I do need at least a drink to be around my parents.”**  Something inside him loosened a little bit, maybe he finally was finding his footing around Billy.

 

**“You know since I’m stuck here and you don’t seem to have a better place to go, would you like to stay?”**

 

“ **You sure about that? What if I decide to never leave?”**

 

**“It pains me to say it but you’ve actually made my night, I didn't exactly enjoy it by myself, maybe having you here isn’t the worst thing happening to me. So would you stay?”**

 

 **“When you put it that way, how can I resist?”**  Billy bumps his shoulders but instead of withdrawing he just leans against him,  **“I’ll stay.”**

 

**“Good.”**

**“Good.”**

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you like it and please leave some comments to see what you think about it.


End file.
